


Little Pistol

by stxrdrifter



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, New Dangan Ronpa V3: Everyone's New Semester of Killing
Genre: AU, Angst, Assassination plot, Attempted assassination, Blood, F/F, Guns, Lesbianism, The inherent eroticism of being pinned against a wall by someone with a knife, i guess, kaede plays piano
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-18
Updated: 2020-11-18
Packaged: 2021-03-10 00:20:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,900
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27614753
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stxrdrifter/pseuds/stxrdrifter
Summary: Target: Kaede AkamatsuPlace and Time: Evergrande Theatre, 26th March, 21:00Weapon: Hecate II Sniper RifleDo not miss.
Relationships: Akamatsu Kaede/Harukawa Maki
Comments: 7
Kudos: 39





	Little Pistol

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by the work "unprocessed emotions" by hamifihekrix. Link at the end.

The theatre was packed full of observers. The pretentious of the pretentious and the bored of the bored, people from the wealthiest walks of life sat, mingling under the warm theatre lights. Maki Harukawa was hiding above on a balcony. She had a rifle in its case on her left and the curtains separating her and her target to her right. 

Her target was Kaede Akamatsu, renowned pianist across Japan. The girl was young, but Maki knew her praise well. She glanced at the dossier while she still had a fresh moment.

> _ Target: Kaede Akamatsu _ _  
>  _ _ Place and Time: Evergrande Theatre, 26th March, 21:00 _ _  
>  _ _ Weapon: Hecate II Sniper Rifle _ _  
>  _ _  
>  _ _ Do not miss.  _

Normally, her dossiers had a reason for her to take her shot. A brief description on the target, what the purpose of the mission was, something other than  _ “Do not miss.”  _ She closed and burned the dossier without a second thought before readying her rifle. The room was still bustling, so she didn’t need to be quiet and intricate about her preparations. As she finished and aimed to the stage, the lights went down and the curtains were drawn off to the sides.

Alone on the stage was a single white grand piano. It had no wheels attached, so it must have been a permanent fixture. The make and model mattered little to Maki, the only thing that mattered was the paycheck she’d be receiving eight miles west after she expended one and only one bullet.

Seconds later, a girl emerged from one of the wings. She wore a knee-length pink dress and white stockings. As the girl sat down, Maki peeked through her scope to make sure it was her target. Her gaze landed on beautifully done up blonde hair, pink piercings in her ears, and gorgeous pink eyes. It was her target. 

Kaede sat down at the bench and pulled a single white cloth from… somewhere, Maki didn’t know exactly. Before she could even think of what it might be for, she wrapped it around her head and covered her eyes. A few gasps emanated from the audience, but for the most part people were silent.  _ Was this to be expected? _

She rested her hands on the keys.

Maki hadn’t realized her heart was racing until Kaede began to play. She knew the song well. Debussy’s  _ “Clair de Lune”,  _ an iconic piece of music known for being incredibly relaxing. Her hands danced along the keys and Maki felt herself begin to cry. She felt an unfamiliar warmth, a kindness emanating from the piano. 

Maki knew if she didn’t shoot now, she never would. She closed her eyes and pulled the trigger.

\- - - - -

Kaede felt something whip past her, but she didn’t stop for a second. Her heart began to race, but she kept breathing and kept playing. She heard screams from the audience. Another loud bang, another breeze, a few more times. Eventually the room was quiet except for her playing and the sound of another bang, and a crash against the wall beside her.

She was terrified. She’d figured out someone was shooting at her, but the only thing keeping her calm and collected was the song she pressed into the keys. The reverberations of the piano had changed, so she assumed the room was empty. Still, she could not see for sure. Another bullet was fired, hitting her bench, but she kept playing. Her heart felt a fear she could not name, but her hands still moved across the keys.

\- - - - -

“Why can’t I hit her?” Maki thought. She fired again, the bullet grazing her hands. Blood dripped onto the keys, but she kept playing the most beautiful song Maki’d ever heard in her life. She pulled the trigger again, but it only clicked. She’d run out of ammunition.

“Fuck,” she grunted. She dropped the gun and jumped down from the balcony. The room had emptied out, nobody bothering to try to save the girl onstage, only caring for their own lives. She marched up to the stage.

\- - - - -

Kaede could hear heavy boots approaching. Her hands hurt, something had hit her while she was playing. The footsteps got closer and closer until she felt a grip against the back of her dress, and before she knew it she was up and standing. 

Her attacker ripped off her blindfold and punched her in the face. Her eyes couldn’t adjust to the lights fast enough, she merely stumbled back, nearly tripping over her bench. Another punch hit her cheek, and soon enough she was against the wall. Just as her vision returned, her attacker pressed her to the wall with their forearm against her throat.

Her attacker was not what she expected. Long, long black hair, a red button-down paired with a black waistcoat and slacks, all complimented the beautiful face in front of her. Crimson eyes stared into her own, dark red lipstick spread across perfect lips, and in her hair was a pin resembling a treble clef. 

Kaede’s terror was matched with an indescribable feeling of desire.

“ _ Why?! Why can’t I kill you?! _ ” the girl shouted. Her voice was beautiful, even while screaming less than a foot from her face. Everything about this girl was breathtaking. The girl punched her again. “Why?” 

“You’re beautiful,” Kaede muttered. 

\- - - - -

“What did you say?” She tried her hardest to be intimidating. She pulled a knife from her pocket and placed its tip gently under Kaede’s chin. “Say it again.”

“You’re beautiful.” Blood dripped from her lips down to her chin. 

“Wh-what?” Maki responded. She was stunned at the fact that this girl could even speak still, let alone be so unafraid to call her beautiful. 

Maki’s heart raced. Her adrenaline was gone, replaced by fear. She’d failed the mission, she missed all her shots, and she was going to be killed for it. She looked at Kaede, tears spilling from her eyes. Yet, despite everything, she was smiling. Despite the bruises and cuts along her face from Maki’s punches, she was beautiful. She hadn’t gotten to appreciate Kaede’s appearance from the balcony, but now that she was close she took it all in. Her eyes, her hair, her bruised and bloodied cheeks, and the treble clef earrings dangling from her ears. 

“I’m going to kill you,” Maki uttered. Less for Kaede to know what was coming, more to remind her what her job was. She was here to take a life, not to desire one. The butterflies in her chest had wings of brimstone.

“What’s stopping you?” Kaede asked. Maki knew she must be scared, so why wouldn’t she show it? She wasn’t shaking, her cracked lips weren’t trembling, her bubble gum pink eyes wouldn’t waver from Maki’s. “Go ahead.”

“I—” Maki started, but it trailed off. She couldn’t bring herself to kill this girl. 

“Tell me your name, before you kill me,” Kaede requested. “Please, I’d like to die knowing the name of who killed me, if that’s okay.” It was a simple request, but Maki could tell there was more to it. It wasn’t about her killer, was it?

“Why?” Maki pressed harder against Kaede’s throat.

“Because she’s the most gorgeous girl I’ve ever seen,” she choked. She coughed, a little bit of blood spraying in front of her. 

Maki’s heart fluttered at the remark. She knew now what she was feeling, despite not knowing the words to describe it. The pain and emptiness she’d once felt suddenly felt full and whole. She felt visceral, a desire welled itself up from inside her.

Before she could think, she pressed her face to Kaede’s. Her eyes shut tight, her arm moved off of Kaede’s throat and to the wall, and she felt a bloody hand press against her face.

Gentle was the only word that could describe it. For the first time, Maki had felt gentleness. The hand resting on her cheek was nothing but tender. Kaede’s lips, tasting of salty tears and iron-rich blood, felt kind against her own. For just a moment, she felt calm.

Then the two girls separated. She opened her eyes to see Kaede’s still closed. Maki couldn’t stop thinking about how beautiful she was.

“Maki Harukawa.” 

Kaede nodded. “Thank you, I’ll remember that.” 

Maki dropped her knife to the floor. “Please don’t forget me,” she said.

\- - - - -

As soon as Kaede opened her eyes, Maki was gone. The doors to the theatre burst open, police and security making their way inside. They saw Kaede standing alone on the stage and ushered her out of the room to an ambulance, where she was bandaged and wrapped in a blanket. A police officer stood in front of her asking her questions, but she wasn’t paying attention.

“Miss Akamatsu? Please focus, I need to know who your attacker was.”

“I don’t know, sir. I didn’t see her,” she responded. 

“H-how? She punched you in the face numerous times, how could you not see her?” Kaede thought up a simple lie.

“I was wearing a blindfold. I perform blind all the time, and I didn’t get it off in time before she attacked me.” The officer looked visibly distraught before walking away to ask for more witness testimony. 

She pressed her fingers to her lips. She could still feel the ghost of Maki’s kiss, the taste of her lipstick still lingering. She wiped her lips off on the back of her hand in case another officer with a brain came back to ask her more questions.

  
  


A few weeks passed. She was in her home, the apartment she shared with a roommate who was never there. As she always was, she sat at her piano. Stitches lined the tops of her hands, wrapped in bandages for protection. The doctors advised against playing piano until her hands healed, but what did they know? 

Her fingers hurt, having been playing for upwards of an hour already. She decided she would do one more song before she had lunch. 

_ Clair de Lune. _

Her hands, her fingers, her body felt alive again as she played the piece. Easily her favourite to play, she felt herself relaxing as her fingers pressed the keys. The rain rattled against the windows, giving the song an ambience it didn’t have before. She didn’t follow a strict tempo, instead playing along with the pace of her breathing.

She closed her eyes. Swirls of pink and red and blue painted the backs of her eyelids like blossoms in the wind. Thunder rumbled outside, adding a dark color to her sight, but the petals continued to dance. She felt the colors all around her. She felt the blue in her lungs and around her neck, a cool taste of D♭ major. She felt the pink and red glide along her arms and her fingertips with the high notes. All of it created the most beautiful scene, and she felt tears welling behind her eyes.

And just as it started, it ended. Her hands began to ache again, and she breathed out a breath she felt like she was holding. Tears rolled down her cheeks as the colors faded away. As she closed the upright grand, she heard a noise behind her. Repetitive, skin against skin, percussive. 

She turned around to see someone clapping for her. Black slacks, black waistcoat, red button-down, dark red lipstick, crimson eyes.

“I hope you didn’t forget me, Kaede Akamatsu.”

“I never did, Maki Harukawa.”

**Author's Note:**

> Link to hamifihekrix's fic: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27392758


End file.
